Cribbing
What an odd thing to watch a horse do… he grabs hold of the rail or the trough with his teeth and does this funny sucking, gulping thing over and over, and all the while he has this strange calm look about him.
For years it was commonly thought that cribbing was a nasty habit, something caused by boredom and it needed to be stopped with electric shocks or a metal collar that prevented the horse from distending his windpipe. But today, we know better. (Then why do a lot of stabled horses start windsucking?)
Research has shown that when horses crib (or windsuck) that the noise it makes is actually not horses gulping air in, they are expelling air out… like a burp! Talk to naturally-oriented horse therapists and they’ll tell you that this is the way horses relieve upper digestive discomfort.
Horses can’t burp, but people can. So horses have to make themselves burp… just like some people can!
Once you understand that a horse is trying to relieve indigestion(indigestion, my ass. He's just trying to amuse himself), all of a sudden it makes you think differently about putting that cribbing collar on the horse (Nope, my windsucker still has her collar on) . If he can’t burp, he’s in gastric pain to varying degrees. And when people say cribbing causes colic, weight loss, etc. maybe it’s the other way around. Cribbing is an early warning sign of digestive distress so it’s only a matter of time before something like a colic will eventuate and it should be no surprise if the horse’s condition is poor (then, explain, Mister Parelli, that when my mare doesn't have her collar on, she loses weight rapidly, then when her collar is on, she stays fat and healthy?).
Cribbing is the result of things like mineral deficiencies, a weak digestive system, feeds that are hard to digest, and stress (which shuts down the digestive system) (or boredom).
At Parelli, we focus on helping horses become more confident, less stressed and more relaxed in their surroundings. We also feed them a simple diet to which every horse gets Parelli Essentials, a unique formula that grooms the digestive system for optimum function. We also feed minerals in a liquid, colloidal, bio-available form: kelp (which we wet down) and / or Parelli Vitals mineral complex (Or you could get a couple of old milk bottles, throw some pellets in them so they make a pretty noise and throw them in your horses paddock and stall so he can have a play with them).
Please try not to be annoyed by your horse’s cribbing. Know that he is in digestive distress and do whatever it takes to change that. Cribbing is also not ‘contagious’ (Oh, believe me. It is). Horses don’t learn it from each other (Explain why my mare went into a paddock of non-windsuckers, then shazam, 3 months later, 5 of the horses windsuck with her), they do it because they live in the same stressful circumstance and / or minerally deficient feeding regime.
Kicking
Horses kick for two reasons… they’re afraid of you or they don’t like you (or they want to kill you. That's three reasons!)! That’s the big, distasteful truth! Fearful horses kick in defense, dominant horses kick out of resentment and dominance. Either way, smacking the horse for it doesn’t work (Damn right it doesn't. Kick the bastard back as soon as he does it).
You need to get the horse to where he trusts you, likes you, respects you (Good ole Pat forgot the most important rule - To make sure your horse knows your boss!)... and none of that is achieved through violence.
First of all, stay out of the kick zone (Is he really telling people to pussie foot around their horse and stay out of his space. Screw that, I will go as close to my horse and do what I want to my horse and if he's kick's me, he gets kicked back). Second, learn to "read" your horse’s intent, they always give warning signs so you need to learn how to recognize them (I agree with that one, if you can tell your horse is about to kick you. Kick him first :D). Thirdly, give your horse no reason to kick you.
I love that article. Listen to Pat, people, stay away from your horses, don't walk around their bums to do their leg straps up, don't you dare stand behind him to brush his tail. God forbid, he gets a cut on his back leg, a kicking horse that has never been reprimanded for it's behavior will take your head off if you try and treat it.
Okay, here's my approach to any and every kind of horse.
Out in the wild, there is a head stallion. If a horse trots up and bites this head hancho on the ass, he won't stand for it. He won't back off and get out of the other horses space and do a horseinality test on it before reacting. No, the head stallion will turn around and in two seconds, convince the other horse it is about to die. That's how I approach my horse. If he bites me, I have two seconds to make him think he is about to die, weather it's me smacking his nose, growling at him or making him back up rapidly, then after he has backed off, I forget about it. It's done, it's over. It doesn't take three weeks to watch four DVD's, do three quizzes, then approach the horse. How is he suppose to know what he's done wrong then?
Anyway, I'm off, I think I could find something better to do then sit here and bitch about Parelli :D
2 comments:
It must be nice to mock people and be narrow-minded and sarcastic. You make yourself sound like a clown in the above posts, the whole time telling the world that you can't keep your horse from being bored out of their mind. Perhaps you should play with your horse more if you think she's that bored... some of this negative energy might be better spent giving your horse some extra attention.
What are you trying to prove dude? Those of us who do the Parelli program are lovin' it. Sounds to me like you have some major control issues. Try looking at your horse as a partner(instead of a bastard) and maybe he will teach you something.
And by the way, those minerals are awesome. When my gelding is on them he eats way less feed and is content and healthy.
Try to savvy on dude....but you'll need to change your attitude first.
Post a Comment